How to Counter Jihadist Appeal among Western European Muslims

Worldwide terrorism connected with the jihadist insurgencies in Syria and Iraq emerges disproportionately among second- and third-generation Muslim youth from Western Europe. Many of them identify neither with European society nor with their countries of origin, but find in jihadist propaganda an identity in a transcendent “nation of Islam.” Governments should prepare community leaders to identify and intervene with at-risk youth and should enhance and coordinate efforts to counter jihadist propaganda both online and in local communities.